


Love Never Needed an Audience to Thrive

by spirithorse



Series: Purple Prose AU [4]
Category: Tales of Zestiria
Genre: Gen, Purple Prose AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-02
Updated: 2016-10-02
Packaged: 2018-08-19 03:03:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,402
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8186963
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spirithorse/pseuds/spirithorse
Summary: An in-depth analysis of how Sergei Strelka influenced the Glenwood romance genre.





	

**Author's Note:**

> So a funny thing happened on twitter between myself, [namio](http://archiveofourown.org/users/namio) and [shamingcows](http://shamingcows.tumblr.com/), which resulted in more Purple Prose AU. Basically the whole thing started out with “What if Sergei wrote romance novels in his spare time?” and it spiraled out from there. Thanks to namio for the “Love never needed an audience…” title that is used throughout here.

Seraph Mikleo,

It is with humble apologizes that I write this letter to you. Since I first met the Shepherd and the years following I have consistently made assumptions about the nature of Sorey’s relationship with Rose. Considering the restrictions on my ability to see seraphim, you can see how the fault was first made. Not that I am offering this as an excuse. I should have realized by the circumstances, their behavior and later conversations the true nature of your relationship with Sorey. Instead, I ignored it and continued to spread the lie, even to the point of using it for the basis of several novels. I wish that I could erase every word of them but I cannot. I can only offer my sincere apologies and hope that you have not been offended or your life been made awkward by these assumptions.

Humbly yours,  
Sergei Strelka

 

 

Sergei,

All of this is fine. I didn’t tell you about our relationship because I was offended by your books. You asked for the historical facts and I gave you them the best I could. To be honest, I think we should have told you earlier, but it didn’t seem important with everything that was going on. But, you know now. Just, please, don’t go overboard.

Rose sends her love and wants to know what your next novel will be about (she also says that she likes the way that you describe her and to keep it up). Eguille and the others should be in Pendrago soon if you want to renegotiate the terms of your contract with the Sparrowfeathers or if you just want to renew it. I don’t know when we’ll be by, but it will be soon afterward. We’re almost done out here.

Mikleo

* * *

An Excerpt from _My One Guiding Light:_

 

> The column of light stood out bright against the night sky, blotting out the bright stars with it’s brilliance. But that didn’t bother the seraph, the column of light was the one star that he needed to see.
> 
> Mikleo sat on the edge of the cliff, letting his legs dangle off as he stared at the light. He was too far away to tell, but he liked to imagine it was warm.
> 
> Sorey had always been warm, full of smiles and life. Sometimes the column danced, but it wasn’t the same as Sorey’s energy, that had always felt different. Mikleo would know better than most, he had felt Sorey’s energy intimately through the armatus. He had felt every joy and sadness through that connection and to not have it left him feeling empty.
> 
> The seraph carded a hand through his soft white and aquamarine hair, his fingers catching in the feather that he had tied there. Mikleo stroked over the feather, letting his fingers linger over the end. 
> 
> It wasn’t exactly like Sorey’s or the ones that had held up their hair in armatus, but it was almost orange and it would do. It was a reminder of the human that he had loved and lost, a symbol of his dedication to wait. And he would wait, until the day their dream could be realized.

* * *

## Literature Courses offered by Marlind University for the Fall Semester

INTRODUCTION TO CLASSIC GLENWOOD LITERATURE (LIT 101)  
_Professor Lemaire_  
An overview of the literary canon of Hyland and Rolance to include some of the Shepherd’s tales and the literature from the height of the kingdom of Lohgrin.

PLAGUE LITERATURE OF THE AGE OF CHAOS ERA (LIT 106)  
_Professor Cailean_  
A course that focuses in on the plague that shook Marlind during the Age of Chaos. While not primarily written about at the time of the plague, the event was well recorded in the years that followed. This course will trace the lasting impression that the plague left on the city.

THE SHEPHERD’S JOURNEY: A LOOK INTO HYLAND’S SHEPHERD LORE (LIT 205)  
_Professor Olson_  
Shepherd lore has always been a popular subject, although it was neglected towards the start of the Age of Chaos. This course will look into the lore specifically tied to the kingdom of Hyland starting with the earliest known records through to the lore attached to Shepherds Sorey and Rose and ending with the modern lore.

SERAPHIM AND HELLIONS: DEPICTIONS OF RESONANCE BASED CREATURES IN CLASSIC LITERATURE (LIT 206)  
_Professor Rhodes_  
As seraphim and hellions were invisible to most of the population for large periods of time, their place in the literature has been shaky. This course will explore the metaphors and slight of hand mentions that have been slipped into the classic canon to reveal the presence of seraphim and hellions long before the rise of resonance.

1001 LOHGRIN NIGHTS: TALES FROM A FORGOTTEN KINGDOM (LIT 214)  
_Doctor Burakgazi_  
This course aims to study the literature of the kingdom of Lohgrin from it’s beginnings in oral poetry to the great epics that were written at the fall of the kingdom. Special course only available for fall term. 

THE CELESTIAL RECORD AND ITS INFLUENCE ON GLENWOOD LITERATURE (LIT/HIS 313)  
_Professor Mikleo_  
A comprehensive look at the Celestial Record and the classical literature that drew its inspiration and themes from it. Special course only available for the fall term.

“LOVE NEVER NEEDED AN AUDIENCE TO THRIVE” (LIT 369)   
_Professor Nami_  
An in depth look on how Sergei Strelka’s romance novels influenced the genre for generations to come, with a specific focus on the Early Empire Regency and Shepherd-Seraph romances.

* * *

An Excerpt from _Resonance and Resistance_.

 

> It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a Shepherd in possession of a good level of resonance must be in want of a Squire.
> 
> However little known the feelings of views of such a Shepherd may be when considering the firm beliefs of his seraphim companions. This truth is so well fixed in the mind of these great beings that it is considered right and proper for him to seek out another of his resonance.
> 
> Lily pondered this fact extensively, as was her duty as Prime Lord to Shepherd Saul. To make sure that the Shepherd was healthy and able to combat the hellions that were so prevalent in the current age.
> 
> It was not done for a Shepherd to work on his own, and there had been plenty of partners for him in the past. But that was the past. Shepherds had started to become scarce in the past years, another thing that worried her. If there was not another Shepherd, then there should at least be a Squire to match him, because the burden of the Shepherd was too great for a single man alone.
> 
> Lily absently turned the papers that she had laid out on the table, reading the fortunes on them without remembering them. It was not a reading she had done for Saul, it was one she had done to calm her mind.
> 
> Saul could not keep going as he was, he was exhausted. Even the support of his firm friend, Marco, would not be enough, no matter how hard the water seraph tried.
> 
> Lily nodded to herself, gathering her papers together. Her mind was made up and, although the choice pained her, she would have to act. It would be easier to ask for forgiveness than permission. Having a healthy Shepherd would be far better than having no Shepherd at all.
> 
> She tapped the papers together before tucking them away in her purse. If they were going to find a Squire for their Shepherd, then it was time to talk to Eva and get the plan in motion.

* * *

An exclusive interview with Ava Tifft, the author of Ladylake Time’s Bestseller _In the Arms of the Shepherd_.

 _Thank you Ava for agreeing to talk to us.  
_ No problem. To be honest, I’ve been praying for this honor most of my life. I started out contributing to the _Tower of Love_  fanzine. It was the place where I started my career.

 _So it’s all come back around neatly.  
_ I think so. After all, the start of what would become _Purification in Elysia_  was first published here, or at least the main part. And that was inspired by the famous _Raptures in Pendrago_ , which which led to the creation of the _Tower of Love_  zine by the Platinum Knights. It’s all a neat little circle.

 _That’s almost too perfect. So, would you say that Sergei Strelka influenced you to become the writer you are today?  
_ Of course. I had always toyed with the idea but one summer I just fell hard for his romance novels. I had broken my leg so I had to stay inside and my older sister dropped off a bunch of books for me to read. Most of them were Strelka romances and I devoured them.

 _Any particular favorites?_  
Where to start…Well I have to say that any of the Blue Valkyrie series has a special place in my heart, especially _Love’s Shield_ , but that’s not to say that I didn’t like _The Merchant’s Bodyguard_  or _Resonance and Resistance_. But my absolute favorite still has to be _My One Guiding Light_. That one is the one that started it all you could say. I spent years trying to match what Sergei did in his Shepherd-Seraph romances.

 _Considering your recent success, I’d say you nailed it._  
Really? That’s…that’s a huge compliment, especially coming from you guys.

* * *

New reprint of Sergei’s Strelka’s classic love story and the start of the famous Blue Valkyrie series, _Love’s Spear_.

Sophia Teneger is a well off daughter of a Ladylake cloth merchant who is hopelessly in love with Heinrich Bolingbroke, a young soldier. The romance between the two had just begun to flourish when war is declared between Hyland and Rolance. Heartbroken, Sophia watches her love march off to war. Daily, she listens to the news coming from the front until she can take it no longer. Will Sophia respect her family’s wishes and remain safe in Ladylake? Or will she follow the path of true love that leads her to Heinrich?

500th Anniversary Edition includes:

  * a new forward and introduction by Terrance Hide, editor of the Sergei Strelka fanzine, _Tower of Love_
  * full illustrations
  * an essay on the background of the first Hyland-Rolance War by Professor Mikleo



“A tour de force of romance and history. The pre-Age of Chaos world lives and breaths in Strelka’s worlds.” - Romance Literature Review

“This romance is one for the ages.” - Tower of Love

“I could not put this down. The devotion and love that Sophia and Heinrich show each other is inspiring.” -  Ava Tifft, author of Ladylake Time’s Bestseller _In the Arms of the Shepherd_

“Ladylake has never been treated with such love and care in a novel. The scenes of battle are impeccably rendered and the reasons for the conflict are never glossed over. Sergei brings the world to life in this novel.” - Princess Alisha Diphda.

* * *

Perhaps the genre that Strelka was most influential in was the Shepherd-Seraph. While there had always been Shepherd lore from their first appearance, those accounts had always been focused more on their actions and great deeds and not on the people themselves. Shepherd lore also tended to be restricted to annals or illustrations in shrines to the seraphim. The Celestial Record has been, surprisingly, an exception rather than the rule when it comes to Shepherd lore.

It was with the rise of Shepherds Sorey and Rose that the interest in Shepherd lore moved from the solely historical to the people who wore the cloaks. For the first time in recorded history people knew the names of the Shepherds and the seraphim that accompanied them, even if their personal resonance was lower than needed to see the seraphim. That in combination with the many local accounts of the Shepherds led to a boom in Shepherd Lore, which quickly spiraled out into other genres.

Romance was the first genre to jump on these more human Shepherds. Authors produced hundreds of stories about Shepherd Sorey and his companions, although these mostly focused on the human women in his life. Sergei Strelka was among them, writing almost exclusively about the relationship between Shepherd Sorey and his Squire Rose. The shift came with the novel _Rapture in Pendrago_ , where the love interest was shifted to Lailah, Sorey’s Prime Lord. 

While Strelka never revealed why he broke from the usual pattern, is likely that he changed because of a request from one of his fellow Platinum Knights. Many of Strelka’s famous novels came from requests from his fellow knights and it is equally as probable that the request came from Anthony Tambor, who records show had started to enter into a relationship with a seraph around the time that Strelka was working on _Rapture in Pendrago_. It is likely that further requests from Anthony and the interest of the other members of the Knight’s Tower encouraged him to keep exploring the relationship between seraphim and their Shepherds, and not only in Shepherd Sorey’s story but in historical and fictional Shepherds.

The affect on the populace was telling as it normalized the seraph-human relationships that were starting to appear with the rise of resonance. Although there was an initial harsh reaction from the shrinechurches it was quickly silenced with the support of the seraphim and the populace.

Strelka’s many other Shepherd-Seraph romances that followed were equally as successful as _Rapture in Pendrago_ , even when he took the then radical step to move from writing Sorey in a relationship with the women in his part (although Sergei strictly stuck to Rose) to writing Sorey exclusively with Mikleo. In the light of Grand Seraph Mikleo’s statement 200 years after Sorey’s death, the reason is obvious, but at the time it was assumed that another one of the knights requested the initial love story that became _My One Guiding Light_  or that Grand Seraph Mikleo himself broke the news to Sergei himself. 

However it happened, the switch in focus in his Shepherd-Seraph romances opened up a gap in the genre that was quickly filled thanks to the Platinum Knight’s dedicated fanzine to their captain’s works, _Tower of Love_. By providing a space for budding authors to publish their own works or respond to prompts set out by Sergei himself, the _Tower of Love_  encouraged the growth of the genre beyond the mind of Strelka himself.

\- _Love Never Needed an Audience to Thrive: How Sergei Strelka Influenced Glenwood Literature_ , Melissa Duane


End file.
